All the latest news and views from the CPSU team

Friday Wrap: Our week in review

• Will’s vehicle allowance: $15,613 (even though he has a Ministerial driver and car allocated to him)

• Will’s electoral allowance: $37,735 (even though he has a huge office in the Executive building and an entire Department to support him. Apparently this helps cover the cost of buying raffle tickets and making donations to sporting and social organisations)

This means his new salary including allowances comes to a whopping $356,527

Meanwhile, he expects you to take a real wage cut. He says you only deserve an increase of ‘up to’ 2% when the everyday costs of living are growing by a lot more than that. Just in the past few weeks we’ve learned that:

We know Will Hodgman will say that he intends to write to the Speaker to say he won’t take all his entitlement for the time being but there are so many unanswered questions about this process and what’s the bet that as soon as people forget about it, Will and the rest of them, will send another note to the Speaker saying ‘I’ll take all my entitlements now’. Who does the Speaker write to if she wants to forgo some of her huge $17,177 pay rise? The truth is Will Hodgman’s had his hands all over a process that’s resulted in parliamentary salaries ballooning by 10.53% while at the same time he’s demanding public sector workers like you only get ‘up to’ 2% and that’s just plainly unfair. We think it’s time to spread the word that politicians treating themselves differently to public sector workers won’t fly so we’ve developed a poster to share that message.

Download this poster– print it and put it up on your union noticeboard. Email it and share it with your friends. Click here todownload a shareable imageto use on social media, use the hashtag #WillsBigPayDay or like it on ourFacebook page here. Will Hodgman and his government has double standards – he can’t be allowed to sit back and live the good life while public sector workers like you receive a real wage cut despite your hard work delivering the services Tasmanians rely on with fewer resources and not enough staff.

Clearly this is unfair. Share the poster and image if you agree to spread the word.

Casual Loading increase thanks to bargaining

LAST Public Sector Unions Wages Agreement we agreed to increase the casual loading for public sector staff from 20% to 25%. Well, this Friday the loading will finally reach 25% – something we all fought for last bargaining round. This year we also have a chance to make a difference to the lives of Tasmanians who work in our public services today and in years to come. So get involved in your Public Sector Unions Wages Agreement and let’s work together for better workplaces, lives and services.

Coalition’s IR policy unknown – Election Day tomorrow

WHAT is the industrial relations policy of Malcolm Turnbull’s party? We don’t know.He hasn’t told us.

Your rights at work impact on your life at home as well as on the job. Despite a very long election campaign there hasn’t been a skerrick about the Turnbull government’s industrial relations plans if he’s re-elected.

We know he plans axing weekend rates, leaving many families unable to pay their bills after this compensation for working unsociable hours is cut.

\We know he plans to change Paid Parental Leave for working mums which means many mothers will have less time to care for newborn babies at this crucial stage of development.

We know he is keen to bring back the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC), which was a key part of WorkChoices that specifically targets unions and union members but the rest of the Coalition policy remains under wraps.

This should be very worrying to all Australians who work.

Health system failing

HEALTH in Tasmania is failing, which means people in our state who are sick or need surgery are being denied the care they need. This is largely due to cuts made by the Abbott government in 2014 meaning that Tasmania’s public hospitals will lose $20 million next year and $1.1 billion over eight years.

Just looking at the Launceston General Hospital, justthis week we heardabout cardiac arrests in waiting room, a baby delivered in triage and a 95-year-old woman whose cannula was removed in a car outside the hospital.

This is not to mention the freeze on Medicare rebates, stinging pensioners and those who need help the most, plus Turnbull’s mandate to up the cost of prescription medicine.

Biosecurity change management: Big questions

IN FEBRUARY DPIPWE engaged an external consultant to audit its restructure of Biosecurity Tasmania. At the time the CPSU asked if the final report would be provided to the staff who were asked to make submissions. The report has now been provided to DPIPWE and surprise, surprise DPIPWE Secretary John Whittington has decided to keep the report under wraps. This decision lacks transparency and raises a whole range of questions about the management of DPIPWE and its willingness to be accountable for the decisions it makes.

The Friends of Biosecurity Tasmania has written an article on the Tasmanian Times website asking exactly these questions, read ithere.

Public Sector Workers under attack

FROM Hobart CSIRO jobs cuts that’ll hurt public good science to an unfair public sector bargaining policy that cuts wages and pulls conditions backwards, the Turnbull government hasn’t been kind to your Federal colleagues.

Some public sector staff were told this month tomove from Canberrato Northern New South Wales or to find new jobs. Meanwhile, Turnbull’s government isrefusing to includefamily violence leave in staff agreements.

The Department of Human Services, which runs Centrelink and Medicare, was slashed again in the 2016-17 budget with more than 900 workers to be shed in this financial year. ABC staff are also staring down the job cut axe as well. In fact there’s 4500 more jobs to go as a result of the recent Budget.